Monday, December 24, 2018

This is Ninacat, joining me for my first cup of tea for the day. I enjoyed sitting with my journal, making happynotes of how I want my 2019 to look. I love daydreaming on paper! My desire is to fully embrace the life I have created for myself and simplify further, streamline my home for ease and peace, and before more creative. This means more writing, plus hobbies for myself such as sewing.

I have tons of ideas for my writing that are exciting to me, and I can't wait to share them over time. I have fuzzy concepts for books in my head and it's fun to tease them out and put them together to fully form the abstract vision I have for them currently. The tough part is choosing which idea to go with next!

I am here today with part two of my 'A Chic and Simple Christmas' book reading, however I had a disappointing result with the audio on my Part 1 video and I don't know how to fix it. I have done quite a lot of research and am still no wiser, so I decided to record both parts in a single audio, which I know for sure is audible. I hope you enjoy it! You can listen to or download it here:

Whatever you are doing for Christmas, I hope it is merry and bright, and I wish you a brilliant and peaceful time. I am home for Christmas and couldn't be happier, even though I love to have that festive Christmas travel feeling too!

Thank you for joining me this year, on my blog, with my books and on my social pages. I read and appreciate every single email, comment and message, so thank you. I am excited to join you again in the new year for more ways to live a simple and beautiful life without spending a lot of money. This has always been my 'thing' and it hasn't changed :)

Thursday, December 13, 2018

I have something a little different today: I thought I would do a reading from my book 'A Chic and Simple Christmas', so I really hope you enjoy this video. Naturally it would not be one of my videos without being visited by a pet or two.

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

I know that many of my readers live in the northern
hemisphere, so I thought it might be fun to talk about my summery Christmases.

I have lived in New Zealand all my life, so having a roast
Christmas lunch on a warm and sunny day is completely normal to me :)Many people have barbeques and more summery
fare instead, but to me a traditional roast meal always spells Christmas.

Late December isn’t really the high point of summer heat
here, but if we’re lucky it will be a pleasant temperature.From my childhood I seem to remember mid-afternoon
stormy sun-showers, but I’m not sure how many Christmases were actually like
that!

In spite of the festive season falling in our summer, most
of our Christmas traditions are wintry.Crazily enough, it doesn’t seem strange at all for me to be humming ‘Let
it snow, let it snow, let it snow’ or watching Christmas movies set in the
winter when the sun is shining bright and warm outside.

There is so much charm to be had from imagining cozy wool
hats, mittened hands holding a cup of hot chocolate, and a family sitting
around a big table with a roaring fire going.These visions fuel my Christmas fun as I put in a sleeveless sundress to
get a bit of colour on my arms and legs while I take the dogs for a walk.

As the years go by and I have become clearer on how I want
my Christmas to look and feel, the more I love the festive season.I say a big YES to: holiday-themed feel-good
romantic comedy books, Christmas movies and music, going out to view Christmas
lights, having a simple yet beautiful Christmas decor, and joyful entertaining
at home throughout December.More and
more I strive to say a polite ‘non’ to: gifts, that rushed hurried feeling and
unnecessary stress.

I also love to wear a nice dress on Christmas day.It seems a day for dressing up, and I would
never wear jeans, even though I wear jeans 90% of the time.It doesn’t have to be a newly purchased
dress, although I have done that in the past and it feels good to have
something new to wear on Christmas day.This year I have a navy floral dress which I recently bought for my
husband’s work Christmas function.(It’s
this style here
and I love it!)

Please tell me about where you live and what Christmas day
is normally like weather-wise, and also what you plan to wear if you have your outfit
already picked out!

~Fiona~

PS. My Christmas prep series 'A Chic
and Simple Christmas' is available on YouTube. There are ten tips to help
you feel good about the holiday season. They are quick to watch, and in a
playlist so you don't have to start each video individually. View my holiday video series here.

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In real life, I don't live in a chic Paris apartment. I can make my real life more fun without having to move countries though. All I have to have is a little imagination. This is my online inspiration journal. You can email me - fiona at howtobechic dot com.

C'est Moi

About Me

Married to my wonderful husband, I am forty-eight years old. We live with our rescue-cats Jessica and Nina and rescue-dogs Daphne and Chloe in sunny Hawke's Bay, on the east coast of New Zealand.
I write about living a simple, beautiful and successful life and I don't believe you have to spend a lot of money to do this.
I also adore self-development and love to cultivate my own growth in a fun and feminine way.

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